Phantom
by splitseconddecision
Summary: Hiiro has retired from war, but a new faction is showing its face. Now he must manipulate someone to take his place in the war... and he has his sights set upon the gullible leader of the senshi. HUD, based on Phantom of the Opera.
1. Prologue

Phantom

Prologue

* * *

Notes: This was written to the soundtrack of The Phantom of the Opera. I warn you of Hiiro/Usa/Duo triangle and swearing. That is all.

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon or Gundam Wing, nor do I own The Phantom of the Opera. No money is being made from this fic. Please do not use this fanfiction without permission.

* * *

Masquerade!  
Paper faces on parade . . .  
Masquerade!  
Hide your face,  
so the world will  
never find you!

* * *

It had been a simple enough plan, Hiiro thought to himself, watching the small television in his lair in the basement. Disappear mysteriously, so that the world would leave him alone, hide away forever surviving on the superstitions of the common people of Tokyo.

He hadn't counted on a new faction emerging from the political mess that was the United Earth Sphere Alliance. Sighing, he shot a glare at the television. There was nothing for it. The Perfect Soldier would have to reappear to stop this upstart group.

Unless…

Hiiro looked to the ceiling. He had watched the students of this high school, the place he had decided to make his underground home. He spirited around the school, posing as a phantom (after all, what decent school didn't have its ghost story?), learning the secrets of all who entered the front gates. They were all afraid of him, Hiiro reminded himself smugly, a rare show of emotion.

He had been particularly interested in a group of girls. There were five in all, not including the four who came to greet them after school on occasion. It had taken him some time to learn their secret, but he was Hiiro Yui, hacker extraordinaire, and he had eventually discovered that the nine girls were the famed Sailor Senshi.

At the time, this hadn't interested him; he kept himself completely detached, observing from a distance. But now, he needed a protégée, someone he could manipulate, someone he could mold into an emotionless fighter.

The thing about the Sailor Senshi was that they were all good fighters. They were smart, they wouldn't let themselves be taken in so easily. They had but one weakness: their leader was a gullible twit.

Hiiro smirked to himself. It would not be hard to manipulate her, even if he could never make her completely emotionless. Yes, she was the best candidate. He stood, pulling on a jacket.

He had to pay Usagi Tsukino a little visit.

* * *

She took a deep breath, calming herself. Her entire future depended on this moment. If she didn't get this right, her world could collapse around her. Everything had to be perfect

There was a ping as the eggtimer went off, and Usagi dove for the oven, opening the door and pulling out the tray of cookies with gloved hands. She inspected the cookies carefully.

"Yes!" she cried joyfully. "They're not burned!" She danced a little jig and waited for the cookies to cool, not noticing as her little brother Shingo walked into the kitchen.

"Wow, Odango, you actually managed to make something without utterly annihilating it. Congratulations," Shingo said wryly, causing Usagi to jump and whirl around.

"You're so mean, Shingo!" she whined.

"I bet they taste awful though," Shingo teased, smirking as Usagi became more and more irritated.

"They taste fine! Here, I'll prove it!" Usagi snatched a cookie from the tray and stuffed it in her mouth, staring at the boy obstinately. After a moment, her face twitched curiously and she ran for the trash can, spitting the cookie out and trying to rid her mouth of the taste. Shingo laughed uproariously and left the room, Usagi glaring after him. When his presence had been erased completely, her glare transformed into an expression of dejection.

"Why can't I be good at something?" she asked herself, staring at the floor.

"You don't try hard enough." Usagi gasped and looked up, not expecting an answer. The speaker was leaning on the kitchen window, which looked out onto the street. He was casual in his stance, but his lean figure carried an aura of conflicting danger and safety. Usagi wasn't concentrating on his aura, however, as she was already trapped in his gaze.

He had the bluest eyes she had ever seen. They were beautiful, in a glacial, emotionless way.

"I apologize for eavesdropping, but I couldn't help but hear you and you brother arguing." Usagi snapped out of her daze, though still entranced by his eyes.

"It's… all right," she replied absently. "Who… who are you?"

"My name is Hiiro. I can help you."

"What, by teaching me how to cook? No offense, but you don't seem to be the cooking type," Usagi said jokingly.

"No, I mean I can help you be good at something," Hiiro replied. Usagi looked at him in awe.

"Really?"

"Quite. Not now, however, as I'm a bit busy. I'll see you around, Usagi Tsukino." Hiiro smirked enigmatically and walked away. Usagi watched him, spellbound, until he disappeared around the corner.

It wasn't until then that she realized she'd never told him her name.

* * *

Hiiro allowed himself to keep the smirk on his face for a moment, and then let it drop, still feeling triumphant. Phase one, complete.

* * *

Yes, I know, rather short and teaser-ish. Now, however, I must go and write Academy and Chocolate Fixes Everything. Ja!


	2. Chapter One

Phantom

Chapter One

* * *

Notes: Well, now that I've finally got off my butt to come and write this (largely attributed to seeing the new Phantom movie for the second time, on Friday), I give you chapter one. And Duo. 

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon or Gundam Wing, nor do I own The Phantom of the Opera. No money is being made from this fic. Please do not use this fanfiction without permission.

* * *

All I want  
is freedom,  
a world with  
no more night . . .  
and you  
always beside me  
to hold me  
and to hide me . . .

* * *

"Shit," Duo Maxwell intoned, glaring at the TV as the anchorman reported the new faction that had somehow wormed its way to the top of the UESA. "As if we haven't dealt with enough war." Duo was startled out of his grumbling as the phone rang. He dove for it, falling backwards over the coffee table as he answered it. 

"Hello?" he moaned, wincing as he touched the back of his head and found a tennis-ball-sized lump where he had hit his head on the corner of the coffee table.

_"Duo?"_ Duo snapped to attention, forgetting his momentary klutz attack.

"Quatre?"

_"Good, I was beginning to wonder whether we would ever be able to track you down… You've heard the news, I guess? About the new faction?"_

"Watching it on the TV as we speak. Have you been in contact with Hiiro?" Duo asked, anticipating a negative answer. No one could find Hiiro Yui if Hiiro Yui did not want to be found.

_"No,"_ Quatre replied, sounding weary. _"We've tried everyone who might know where he is. Even the Preventers are stumped."_

"Damn," Duo muttered. "What are we supposed to do?"

_"Cross our fingers and hope for the best? We can't _do_ anything, Duo. The Gundams are gone, if you've failed to recall."_

"I know, I know, I'm not an amnesiac," Duo shot back. "But, I still… we have to do _something_." Quatre sighed.

_"All right, we'll have a meeting. You, me, Trowa, and Wufei. We'll discuss this further then."_

"Right."

* * *

Usagi jumped about a mile in the air as Minako put a hand on her shoulder. 

"Are you all right, Usagi-chan?" Minako asked with a chuckle. "You've been really jumpy lately. Seen a ghost?" Usagi mulled over this for a moment, twisting her mouth to the side as she inspected her best friend.

"Promise you won't laugh?" Usagi asked hesitantly. Minako frowned, brow creasing as she realized that, indeed, something serious was bothering the little blonde bunny.

"Of course I won't. Usagi, is something wrong?"

"I think I have a stalker," Usagi said despairingly, eyes shifting as if making sure said stalker was not in the vicinity. Untrue to her word, Minako stifled a chuckle.

"Are you sure you aren't just being paranoid, Usagi-chan?" Minako asked, with the air of someone talking to a three-year-old. Seeing that Minako wasn't going to believe her suspicions, Usagi forced a smile.

"That's probably it, then," Usagi said. "After that incident with Chaos, I've been a bit nervous around people I don't know. I swear that every one of them is another Galaxia waiting to happen. I just… don't want anyone to be hurt, and with Mamo-chan away at Harvard, and all…"

"Mou, Usagi-chan, no need to worry! Sailor V is here to protect you !" Minako said, striking a pose and flashing the peace sign. Usagi giggled at Minako's antics.

"That's not much of a comfort," Usagi jibed. Minako pouted, and then looked around.

"Hey, we've walked this far already?" They were almost at school, Usagi noted.

"We may actually be early for once…" Usagi chirped as the girls rounded the corner.

They were met with a most startling image: an officious man in what appeared to be an army uniform was standing at the entrance to the school; within the school gates, Usagi could see bewildered-looking students being marched around by more uniformed men.

"Um, excuse me?" Minako asked the man guarding the gates. "What's going on?"

The man gave Minako a once-over, sneering. "Isn't it obvious, little girl? The Utopia Faction has occupied this school." The girls exchanged wide-eyed glances. "Oh, don't look so despondent. You'll be receiving a much better education than you would have otherwise," the man said in a smug tone. He then ushered the girls into the gates, where they were lead by two more officers to stand in the carefully-ordered ranks of confused and upset teenagers.

Had this been any normal occurrence, the students would have taken a "f-ck-the-administration" attitude. As it was, they were too stunned to do anything other than what they were told.

That, and the officers had machine guns, and looked like they wouldn't balk at using them.

* * *

Hiiro Yui rarely showed emotion. This was a fact that was witnessed and known by the entire Preventer Organization, the UESA council, and most thoroughly by his fellow Gundam pilots. Had they known where Hiiro Yui was at that precise moment — had they even known his thoughts and feelings — they would have been stunned at the amount of rage that was filling his mind. 

_Kuso… kuso… kuso… KUSO!_ The mantra in his head was so violently wrathful that mere English curses would not do, and he had thus resorted to his native Japanese.

He inspected the vid-screens around him with utter fury. They depicted various scenes around the school (piggy-backed from the security cameras used by the school's administration), and Hiiro most certainly was _not_ enjoying the show.

* * *

Usagi trembled as she and the rest of the students in her group were marched single file into a classroom (senior class C's, if she was not mistaken) and glared at until they sat meekly in the desks. 

"Students." The teenagers' attention was drawn to the front of the room as a stern-looking man in his late fifties addressed them. He was dressed sharply in a crisper version of the invaders' uniform, and had an angular face and gray hair. "As you are all aware, this school is now controlled by the Utopian Faction. We are officials of the United Earth Sphere Alliance. Failure to comply in our policies will result in physical punishment. You will, in return, receive a better education than this school could previously supply for you.

"I, Yoshio Watanabe, will be your teacher; you will call me 'sir' or 'sensei' at all times. Is that clear?" There followed a stunned silence. Watanabe's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I _said_, is that _clear_?"

"Yes, sir," the class mumbled in disjointed unison. Usagi quailed slightly, and then mentally reprimanded herself. She was a Sailor Senshi! Moreover, she was Sailor Moon! And Sailor Moon did not allow middle-aged men in uniforms scare her.

No matter how many machine guns they had.

* * *

Hiiro spotted a flash of startlingly blonde hair from the vid-screen that displayed the senior class C's homeroom. He turned his attention to this screen, confirming that it was indeed his protégée — there were, after all, only two blondes in the entire school: Usagi and her best friend, Minako Aino. 

He inspected Usagi's reaction the occupation. As he had anticipated, she was terrified, barely able to keep herself from crying. Hiiro resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He turned up the volume on that particular vid-screen and listened to Watanabe's speech, watching Usagi's expression as it progressed.

Just when he thought she would burst into tears, Usagi took a deep breath and steeled herself, removing the fear from her form.

Hiiro thought that maybe she wasn't such a hopeless case after all.

* * *

Thanks to: 

**AdorableAngel; blackrosebunny451; MoonBunny615; Queen Diamond; Usagi Asia Maxwell; Azraelya **(Me, I actually thought Hiiro was acting a bit too emotional… but it's a few years after the war, so I guess people can change over a few years, ne?)**; Angelight **(I think I like this one better than CFE, too. I'm a more angsty person. Besides, I'm at a loss for what to write next in CFE, in spite of planning way far ahead. Eh. ::sweatdrop::)**; Dark Universe; Mitsuko08; Liquid Ice **(Ack, I feel the pressure already! T.T)

Next Chapter: mass takeover, infiltrating teachers, and a lesson from the Phantom…

Until then!

Riru-chan


	3. Chapter Two

**Phantom**

_Chapter Two

* * *

_

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon or Gundam Wing, nor do I own The Phantom of the Opera. No money is being made from this fic. Please do not use this fanfiction without permission.

* * *

"The angel sees, the angel knows . . ." – Mme. Giry

* * *

Usagi shifted nervously as she was marched down the hall to the gym along with her class. As if P.E. wasn't bad enough, now it would be enforced with firearms. Brilliant.

Usagi noted that another class was joining theirs: Ami was among the quailing teenagers in that group. Their eyes connected for a moment, and they gave each other slight nods, confirming that they were all right.

Though she had acknowleged Ami to allay the genius' fears, Usagi was still worried, and justifiably so.

The classes were split by gender and forced into the locker rooms; Watanabe told them to be out in ten minutes. Once the doors were closed, there was a general scramble for the girls to find their friends and take comfort. Ami made a beeline for Usagi.

"Daijoubu ka?" Ami asked worriedly. Usagi nodded.

"Hai. Just a bit worried."

"Just a bit?" Ami asked incredulously. "We have every reason to be huddled in a quivering heap in the corner." Ami's eyes darted to a younger girl who was doing just that. "This is so wrong… like concentration camps, almost."

"Concentration camps? What are those?" Usagi asked, eye brows knitting together.

* * *

Hiiro resisted the urge to roll his eyes at Usagi's comment.

* * *

Ami sighed. "It doesn't matter, Usagi. We have to get out of here as soon as possible," she continued. "This can't be legal."

"I don't think they care," Usagi pointed out. Ami nodded, pale.

"That's the scariest part." The girls nodded to each other and parted to find their lockers.

* * *

Duo Maxwell shifted uncomfortably in his new uniform, wondering for the sixty-seventh time how he had allowed Quatre to talk him into playing along with this ridiculously pathetic idea.

He then reminded himself that this was the only idea they had, and if they wanted to bring this upstart faction to its knees, there was no other way to do so.

"So," said the woman behind the desk, looking at Duo over her glasses in a fashion that uncomfortably reminded Duo of Une in the days when she was after his head, along with the rest of OZ. "Ensign Maxwell, is it?" Duo nodded, smiling with a cordiality he did not feel. Maxwell was a common enough name that he had not felt the need to use an alias, although he had switched his first name to John for the time being, to avoid suspicion. The woman-behind-the-desk continued.

"Well, Ensign Maxwell, I do believe we have a position for you," she said. "Although you are quite young yourself, we feel you are qualified to teach children at a high school level… The fact of the matter is, we have recently gained administrative control over a high school in Tokyo." Duo's eyes flashed imperceptibly. He had last heard from Hiiro when the Perfect Soldier was in Tokyo, and the possiblity of finding him there was a bonus to this mission.

"We found that the current teachers are… less than adequate to allow us to give these students a proper education," the woman-behind-the-desk said carefully. Duo nodded in mock-sympathy. The woman-behind-the-desk loosened slightly at Duo's indication of approval. "So, Ensign Maxwell, we will be sending you to Tokyo to teach math, science and English. Your flight leaves Tuesday at eight in the morning. You will arrive by the end of the day, and I fully expect you to begin work on Wednesday."

* * *

A slight beeping alerted Hiiro to the changes in the school database. He snapped his attention to the offending console and began typing at the keyboard connected to it, his eyes darting across the screen as new information flashed before his eyes.

"Maxwell, John," he muttered to himself. "Assigned to mathematics, science, and English…" Hiiro's eyes widened almost imperceptibly as the new teacher's statistics were pulled up. "So, they've already started to retaliate…" Hiiro pondered this in silence before resolving to contact his protegee once again.

* * *

Usagi was home before the rest of her family, quite drained from the trying day at school. She let herself through the front door and into the empty house.

… At least, she thought it was empty. Hand placed itself over her mouth, causing Usagi to give a muffle yelp of surprise and start to struggle.

"Relax, Tsukino-san," said the owner of the hand in monotone. "It's just me. I'm not going to hurt you, so don't scream." Usagi nodded emphatically and the owner of the hand freed Usagi, allowing her to turn around and face her captor.

"Hiiro-san," Usagi breathed, relieved that he wasn't some serial rapist out to get her. (_Then again_, Usagi thought to herself, _You don't know that for sure._) "Don't you know it's illegal to enter someone's house without permission?"

Hiiro stared at her blankly.

"Uh… right," Usagi said awkwardly. "So… who exactly are you? I mean, you knew my name without me having to tell you!"

Hiiro stared blankly once again before sighing. "Tsukino-san, your school has a ghost story, does it not?"

Usagi blinked. "Of course… but what's that got to do with anything?"

"A ghost that's more like a phantom. A ghost who knows everything about the school and it's inhabitants. A ghost who is not at all happy with this new UESA faction taking over his school. Do you catch my drift, _Sailor Moon_?"

Usagi paled.

"Yuh — you —" Hiiro sighed inaudibly.

"You — you — you—" Hiiro prepared for the inevitable 'you know my secret identity!'

"You're a _ghost_!"

Yet another miscalculation Hiiro had made on Tsukino Usagi's part. He was getting rusty.

* * *

Before I do anything else, I must deal with the dispute taking place among my reviewers.

**Lena, Transcendent, and Usa-neechan**: While I appreciate that my story is indeed causing contraversy, I must ask you to stop this argument. If you continue to dispute this in your reviews to this fic, I will be forced to report this to the FF.N admins for review-abuse. Transcendent, if I receive another flame from you, I will report you for abuse even if it has nothing to do with this argument. You say in your profile that you are intelligent and have a good knowlege of the English language, but clearly you underestimate me in mine. Your attitude toward flaming other people speaks of an immaturity that overrides any amount of knowlege you claim to have. Lena, thank you for your support.

**Usagi Asia Maxwell** (Hoi:glomp: Luckily, there have been no others yet… I'm taking pride in being the first and only one, for now. :grin:)**; Dark Universe; blackrosebunny **(Well, I'm not quite in hell yet… more like purgatory.)**; confusing soul; Saris Yui; Kawaii Usa; Usa-neechan**(Yay! Does this mean we'll be seeing more Kamereon very very soon:'D)**; Lena; Sloane Miette** (Oh yeah, gotta love the musicals. XD My best friend is actually playing Christine for our high school when we go to the Fullerton Drama Festival, so I'm really stoked. Hehe, yes, I quite like that line myself… Oh, you will be seeing quite a bit more of the pilots very soon…)


	4. Chapter Three

**Phantom**

_Chapter Three_

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon or Gundam Wing, nor do I own The Phantom of the Opera. No money is being made from this fic. Please do not use this fanfiction without permission.

* * *

Long ago

It seems so long ago!

How young and

innocent we were...

She may

not remember

me, but

I remember

her...

* * *

Usagi shuddered, glancing around Hiiro-the-phantom's underground lair with apprehension. After she had realized that Hiiro was not a ghost (although he knew everything about her and her friends anyway), she had allowed herself to be dragged back to the school. Hiiro had weaved his way through remarkably engineered passages and trap doors until they emerged in what appeared to be an abandoned basement.

"I didn't know the district built secret passages into their schools," Usagi said conversationally, as it became apparent that Hiiro wasn't paying much attention to her.

"They don't. I installed them myself," Hiiro said simply. Usagi blinked.

"Well… that's…" Usagi stuttered, not knowing exactly what to say. Hiiro Yui was an enigma if she ever saw one. She sighed. "Are you going to explain _anything_ to me?" she asked nervously. Hiiro's eyes darted over to her, sizing her up.

"Sit down," he said flatly. Usagi jumped, and then sat down on the lumpy couch behind her. Hiiro moved away from the monitors he hand been inspecting and stood in front of her, arms crossed over his chest and an impassive expression on his face.

"You understand that this school has been occupied by a militant force?" Hiiro asked. Usagi stared blankly at him.

"You mean, I understand that we've been invaded by gun-toting maniacs?" Hiiro simply blinked.

"These people belong to a politcal faction currently fighting for domination in the UESA. This faction, the Ottana Foundation, must be stopped at all costs. At least one former Gundam Pilot has infiltrated the system, posing as a teacher in order to sabotage it."

"Gundam Pilot?" Usagi asked excitedly. "Like, Wing's pilot?" She had been caught up in the After Colony wars, anxious for the condition of the society she was to someday rule, and her attention was often captured by the heroic actions of the Gundam Pilots. Wing Gundam, in particular, was her favorite; the pilot must have been super-human to withstand the trials she had heard about.

"No. Deathscythe's pilot, Duo Maxwell. Maxwell has taken the name John Maxwell to avoid suspicion," Hiiro said. Usagi nodded, mentally wondering where she had heard the name Duo before. "Tsukino-san, I have enlisted you to help eliminate this faction."

Silence.

"Why me?" Usagi asked after a moment, shocked. ""Why can't you do it yourself?"

"I'm retired. You're the only person around with the capacity to learn what I must teach you for this task."

"What if I don't want to?" Usagi said, pouting slightly.

"You have no choice, Sailor Moon," Hiiro replied, watching impassively as Usagi winced.

"I…" Usagi bit her lip, wondering how she could worm her way out of this one. "Wouldn't Ami-chan be a better choice? Even Minako! I'm too cowardly, I'm not good at anything…"

"As I said, you have the most capacity to learn." Usagi squirmed, while Hiiro mentally rolled his eyes. In a stroke of genius, Hiiro finally pulled out his ace. "You will be something akin to a Gundam Pilot, Tsukino."

Usagi whipped around to stare at him, blue eyes bright. "Honto ni?"

* * *

Duo pulled his motorcycle to a stop by the school as a guard by the front gate stopped him.

"Name and business," the guard said gruffly.

"Ensign John Maxwell," Duo said happily. "Teaching English, math, and science. Can I get through please?" Duo flashed his I.D. and the guard waved him through the gates.

_It's like trying to visit Ririna-san_, Duo thought ironically. _Way more security than necessary._

He checked in at the front office, and directed himself to his new classroom. As he trudged down the halls, he glared blearily at the uniform, clinical layout of the inside of the school. It reminded him of the L2 Colony slums, where he had grown up. _Che. Figures. Even on Earth I'm reminded of my past._

Shaking off the rebellious thought, Duo focused his attention at the problem at hand: in particular, how to bring the Ottana Foundation down before he had to teach a bunch of high school students differential calculus (which he was actually quite good at, in spite of constantly playing dumb).

He arrived at his classroom and sized up the door. Was it just him, or did all classroom doors give off auras of impending doom? He discarded this as a question to ponder on a rainy day and burst into the classroom, making the students inside the room flinch.

Well, that was interesting. Perhaps it was the machine guns all the officers carried around that made the teenagers so jumpy. Duo shrugged to himself and grinned at the students, who looked at him as though he was a madman about to pull an uzi on them.

"Hey guys, I'm John Maxwell, your math slash science slash English teacher. I'm replacing what's-his-name… that incompetent guy you had before," Duo said happily. The students were still petrefied. He rolled his eyes, sitting down in his swivel chair and putting his feet up on the desk. "Look, I don't have a gun, and I don't bite. Much. So relax, you're not gonna die in my presence."

The students exchanged uncomfortable glances and relaxed slightly. Duo sighed. At least they didn't have that "deer-in-headlights" look about them anymore.

"Any questions?" Duo prompted. A blonde girl at the back raised her hand tentatively. Duo nodded to her, hiding a frown of concentration. She looked vaguely familiar.

"W-What exactly is going on here?" she asked nervously.

"Well," Duo began, wondering how he could phrase this in case the room was bugged. "The Ottana Foundation, which is a rising faction in the UESA, is working on attaining more political power. This school is a… test, you could say, to see how well the OF would do running the field of politics." The girl nodded slightly, biting her lip. "What's your name, kid?"

"Usagi. Usagi Tsukino."

Duo froze.

* * *

Duo sighed, glancing at his fellow seven-year-olds with contempt. They avoided him, as if being an orphan was a terrible disease that they could catch. He hated it, being gossiped about, looked down upon…

The tapping of seven-year-old feet approached him quickly, but Duo ignored it, paying attention only when the hair tie on the end of his braid was snatched away as the owner of said seven-year-old feet continued past him.

Duo yelled in outrage and took off after the annoying child who dare defile the Great Duo's braid. He tackled the kid and pinned him down, his little seven-year-old fists raining down on the other kid in fury.

Strong, adult hands pulled him off of the kid, but Duo still struggled.

"That's enough, orphan!" the Adult admonished, ignoring the tears streaming from Duo's eyes.

"But he—"

"No excuses! Why the Maxwell Church puts up with a villian like you I'll never understand," the Adult interrupted. "Get out of my sight! And you see if I don't talk to Father Maxwell about this, you little demon!" The Adult knelt down to comfort the nose-bleeding seven-year-old, leaving Duo to trudge off on his own, holding his braid in place with his hand.

He made it to the park before breaking down into seven-year-old sobs. It wasn't fair at all! They didn't realize how difficult it was to try to fit in… After six years on the streets, a kid learns to trust only himself. It's impossible to rely on anyone after that — impossible to try to fit in. And the other kids… name-calling didn't seem to cover the constant torment he received at their hands and —

"Are you okay?" Duo looked up into blue eyes. A little girl of about six stood before him, bright blonde hair pulled into twin buns, with little tufts of hair sticking out from them. Duo was mesmerised.

"Yeah, I guess. I've never seen a blonde person before. Are you an angel?" The girl giggled.

"Nope. I'm a Usagi. Usagi Tsukino!" She held out a six-year-old hand for Duo to shake. "I've never seen a boy with a braid before. It's cool!" Duo broke out into a grin and shook Usagi's hand.

"I'm Duo."

"Nice to meet you! You wanna play?" Usagi asked, eyes sparkling with six-year-old innocence.

"Sure!" Duo replied. It was without a doubt the happiest hour of Duo's seven-year-old life, playing white knight and damsel-in-distress with the six-year-old angel named Usagi.

Then, Usagi's scarf flew away, carried by a puff of wind generated by the colony's weather-simulator. She giggled and ran after it, followed by Duo. They rounded a corner in the trees, and watched as the scarf settled in the middle of a pond.

Usagi stopped short and began to cry, her six-year-old-angel-blue-eyes filling with tears as she watched her scarf drift in the middle of the pond, which seemed like an ocean to her six-year-old eyes.

Duo, watched, heartbroken, as his new friend started to sob, as he had been sobbing mere hours ago.

"Don't worry Usagi," he said, putting a seven-year-old hand on his six-year-old angel's shoulder. "I'll get it for you!" Duo rushed over to the pond and waded in, ignoring the darting tadpoles that would have normally captured his seven-year-old attention. Chest-deep in pond water, he triumphantly grabbed Usagi's scarf, and made his way back to shore, where Usagi was watching him with wide and hopeful six-year-old eyes.

He emerged from the pond, a proud grin on his face as he held the scarf out towards Usagi's quivering hands. She took it gently, inspecting in, and then looked back up at Duo.

"Thank you!" she said fervently, pulling Duo into a big hug, even though he was soaking wet and his already half-undone braid had fallen out of it's style. And then, Usagi gave him an innocent, six-year-old-blonde-angel-with-a-scarf kiss on the cheek.

* * *

And in AC 197, Duo suddenly realized why the blonde girl looked so familiar.

* * *

A/N: Okay, so… no more arguing, Transcendent-chan and I have worked this all out… a BIG misunderstanding, so don't bug her about it, okay:sweatdrop: I myself made a big mistake by misinterpreting her intentions. And now she's my beta, go figure. :sweatdrop again: Ehehe…

**Samisweet **(:wince: Yeah, well, the chapters are short because I'm trying not to write myself into a corner by putting too much in one chapter… the trick is to always have something else to say.); **Flame Ivy Moon; Saris Yui** (At first, Usagi will be ditzy and stupid, but only as much as she is in the anime/manga. But remember, she's under Hiiro's wing now, so that's either going to change her or break her.); **Hoshiko Megami; LostTenshi** (I appreciate your support, but as I've said, Transcendent and I have worked it all out… please don't be mad at her!); **Angelight** (:teary eyes: I knew there was a reason I loved you :glomp: Yes, it is tedious… And thankfully, over. Duo-kun's personality shining yet?); **jojo** (Stars has not taken place…At least I don't think it has… XD Anyway, Usagi is not Cosmos, so no maturity for her at the moment.) ; **blackrosebunny; serenity77; Vera-Sama; Dark Universe; Kiki Smythe; eternalmoonprincess** ( :'D Really? I do so like using those types of endings on chapters. Although, I would hope that readers would want to continue reading anyway. :grin:)

**Addressing concerns:**

**Usagi's ditzyness:** Yes, Usagi is a ditz. This is a known fact. No, she will not remain a ditz. Much. She's being trained by Hiiro, for crying out loud! He's going to squish some of the ditzyness out of her, but she will still be the kindhearted klutz we all know and love. Just less of the klutz and way more insightful. (Note: this may take a while to show.)

**Timelines:**

Gundam Wing: After the Eve Wars. Gundams are destroyed. Preventers in effect, but Hiiro (aka Preventer Zero) is missing, last seen in Tokyo. Duo lives on L2 Colony, Trowa is with the circus but visits Quatre a lot, Quatre lives in his l4 Colony mansion with his Maguanacs, and Wufei spends most of his time working with the Preventers under Lady Une's direction. Ririna Dorlian-Peacecraft is the Vice-Foreign Minister in the UESA, one of the higher-ups. Pilots are seventeen, everyone else's ages are relative.

Sailor Moon: Between Mamoru's departure for Harvard and the first Starseed attack in Stars. Chibi-usa is back in the 30th century. The Starlights have not made an appearance. Inners are 16, outers are aged in relation.

**Chapter length:** The chapters are short for two reasons: 1) so I don't write myself into a corner. If I always have something left to say, there will always be another chapter. 2) I can get the chapters out more quickly. It takes less time to write if it's shorter.

**Ottana Foundation:** Ottana is Italian for eighty. Why? Because the leader of the faction is name Dicotto, which is Italian for eighteen. Why? Because Transcendent thinks it's a hot name. XD


End file.
